Fort Worth weekly gazette. [volume] (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1882-1891, 1887-03-18

while No. 90 lies almost intact upon the
ruins. Many persons were injured in
these cars, but few killed.
Back of them is the upturned wreck Of
the smoking car, only corner of which
remains. The car whirled upside down
IS it half fell from the embankment.
scarcely any of its occupants escaped In
jury, aad Policeman Taylor and one or
Two others were killed. The bridge
where the accident Occurred Was built 10
J1ly, 1876. 1t Was 10+ feet ia length,
twenty feet il height and spaDued
| the road, resting on heavy
stone walls. The grade Of
the road is very heavy IA J there is q sharp
curve where the bridge crosses the high
way. The latter runs di8gOnsuy under
! the bridge and the a0utmcnJs upon which
| the structure rests are set at Sharp
| angles. 8lr. Manly OF the city engineers
! office made a careful Inspection of
! the bridge soon aiLeT it had fallen. He
said there was TO apparent reason for its
| giving way or for the breathing Of the iron
work. It seems as if some force had
drawn it forward and thrown it from its
bearings.
D.L, Davis of the Boston and Provi-
dence Railway, considered one OF the
best railroad men in the country, express
ed a similar opinion.
Mr. B.aisdell, who WSS crossing from
the first to the second car Just as the
train struck the bridge, says ne observed
broken journal hanging down. Tnis
would account for Carrying the whole
bridge OF the e5utmeEts. A bad flaw has
been found near the end OF Il twelye-inch
truss which rests q few feet above the
n h-Sy - oh, i;
the iron twelve inches long, OF which
eight iuches is black with rust, while the
rest Of the fracture is fresh.
Engineer White says IL going across
the bridge he felt a shock which he
thought might have been caused by
broken axle This. however, could not
possibly have been the first cause OF the
accident, for the trucks Of the first two
cars are IN good condition. Except as
regards the point above mentioned, TIE
only renal ing possible csuse is u broken
r6il. Il is doubtful if any examination
or this point could result satisfactorily,
FOR theTe are many OF them twisted and
| broken. The scene vt the bridge shortly
after the disaster was h@2rtrendipg. In
one place seven bodies taken cut were
PLACED IN vROw.
All were badly mangled. Large num-
bers Of women were on the train and
many were TO be seen ia The ruins cut
completely IL two, the upper half only
being found. Two men who we're saved
had their faces hacked and the lips OF one
were cut off.
Il has been impossible to obtain a cor
rect and complete list of the killed and
wounded, owiag to the fact that immeGi-
2te!y after the catastrophe occurred its
victims were hastily removed from the
scene and Ia such widely different djrec-
lions that II is extremely difficult
to trace them correctly. Agents Of
re railroad company are now diligently
at work endeavOcing 70 complete the ste
tistics Of the calamity, and a full list OF
the casualties will be furnished 81 the |
earliest practicable moment. All day q
large corps Of surgeons have been at
work attending the injured, who ere
more numerous than was at first
reported, it ROW beingi estimated that
nearly seventy received severe wounds. |
OF these it is said number will probably |
d!e. curious feature Of the disaster is
found il the fact that the entire bridge
went down with the wreck. Not scrap
Of iron remained attached to the &but-
ments, and bu. for the chasm and awful
wreck beneath there was nothing TO in
diCate that bridge once